


Washington’s Spies

by ebineez01



Category: Scarecrow Series - Matthew Reilly
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, F/M, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:21:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26834386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ebineez01/pseuds/ebineez01
Summary: Scarecrow and Mother are given a very important mission, but will they come out of it alive...
Relationships: Other Relationship Tags to Be Added
Comments: 15
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So like I don't already have enough different fics on the go for this fandom, up pops another one 🙂  
> Something different for me so I hope you enjoy  
> Title borrowed from the series of the same name, though I’ve never watched it.

"Remind me again why we're getting stuck with this bullshit duty," Mother griped, as she pulled her greatcoat around her and climbed up into the seat next to her commanding officer, riding shotgun while he drove. Two other Marines were riding backup a few hundred feet behind them, all in aid of escorting a spindly little clerk with glasses three sizes too big for him from Boston to Philadelphia.

"Because these are our orders," Schofield replied evenly. Under normal circumstances that sort of talk from a Gunnery Sergeant to a Captain would have been considered gross insubordination, but he'd grown accustomed to her prickly demeanour, had even counted on it a few times. Gena 'Mother' Newman was something of a rarity in the Marine Corps, as she would be in any armed forces. She'd only managed to join up in the first place because of her enormous size, and no one would ever have guessed that she was a woman despite her nickname. Anyone who knew her, or knew of her, only ever associated it with her being a truly bad Motherfucker. Even now only a select few knew the truth, and the fact that one of those people was the President of the United States had helped over the years. Schofield knew that if it became more widely known, not even Mother's fearsome reputation would keep her from being not only thrown out of the Marines, but also thrown in jail and probably flogged for her deception.

For his part, United States Marine Captain Shane 'Scarecrow' Schofield, wouldn't trade Mother for any other single serving Marine in the whole of the Corps. Or for that matter, any Marine who had served since the Corps' inception some twenty years before. He liked to think he was rather open minded and progressive that way, but knew the majority of men in this year of Our Lord, 1795, would think him insane. Some would even tar him with the same brush as Mother for assisting in her continuing service to her country. But then he guessed the President would have to be tarred right alongside him.

"You would think ole George would have us doing something more important than this," she continued as Schofield flicked the reigns causing the team of horses to move off.

"If you're referring to our Commander in Chief, General George Washington," he replied. "He's got his reasons for wanting us on this detail."

Mother glanced at him. "Care to share?"

He smiled. "I've got a feeling you'll find out for yourself soon enough."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You're riding shotgun for a reason Mother," he said, more serious now. "Just make sure it's primed and ready when we need it."

"I notice you say when, not if..." She saw the corner of his mouth lift, and even though he said nothing more she knew what that meant. The Scarecrow had a canny sense of knowing when something was about to happen, and the look he currently wore was usually a good indicator that it was happening soon. She rechecked her weapons, making sure she had plenty of spare ammunition within easy reach, running her fingers along her custom made blade that was strapped to her right thigh.

xxxxxxx

Steam rose off the flanks of the horses as they stamped uneasily in the early morning mist. Even though the bay gelding was by far the larger of the two, the jet black stallion was definitely the dominant animal, nipping at the neck of the other when it refused to quieten.

The two riders barely noticed the antics of their mounts as they moved fluidly with their animals, concentrating on the road below.

"What are we doing here?"

"You know what we're doing here Rufus," Aloysius Knight answered. "This is the despatch we've been waiting for."

Rufus Mackenzie sighed. "It's always the despatch we've been waiting for Aloysius. When are you going to give this up?"

Knight turned to his companion. "When we get our hands on the proof we need to clear our names."

"They're going to work out what we're doing before that happens."

"Which is why we always make sure we hold up coaches that have gold on board as well," Knight reasoned. "We just look like a couple of disgraced Army men come Highwaymen."

"I hate to break it to you Knight, but that's exactly what we are."

"Not for long Rufus," Knight assured him. "I've got a feeling about this one."

"And this one doesn't have gold on it," Rufus pointed out.

"I know it's a risk," Knight allowed. "But it's one we have to take this time."

Rufus turned back to the road. "What happens then?"

"What do you mean?"

"If we manage to find these magical documents, what do we do then? Go back to the Army?"

Knight shook his head. "No. Not after the way our own men turned on us," he said darkly. "Not after the way Washington himself turned on us."

"I still can't believe he would do that to us," Rufus argued. "He's a good man and we never saw his signature on those orders..."

"Lee's signature was on them..."

"And you know as well as I do that Washington and Lee haven't been seeing eye to eye for some time."

Knight turned to his friend. "So you're saying that Lee ordered that we be murdered by our own regiment without Washington's knowledge?"

Rufus let out a breath. "Yes."

"And how long have you felt this way?"

"A while now," Rufus admitted. "It makes more sense to me than Washington wanting to assassinate two of his best spies."

Knight shook his head. "Not when you take into account what we know Rufus."

"Washington wouldn't have chosen us if he didn't trust us Aloysius."

"That price was put on our heads by order of General George Washington himself Rufus!" Knight yelled, the vehemence in his own voice surprising him.

"After we killed more than half our regiment," Rufus said quietly.

"And once we intercept the battle plans that match the intelligence we brought home that night, that'll be the last piece we need to be able to prove that we killed those bastards in self defence."

"And my question still stands...what then?"

Knight shrugged. "There's a lot of men on those wanted posters besides us Rufus."

Rufus raised an eyebrow. "You wanna become bounty hunters?"

"Why not?" Knight replied. "The Black Knight is just as good a name for a bounty hunter as it is for a highwayman. Speaking of which..." he said, indicating the road below as they heard a carriage approaching in the distance.

xxxxxxx

"I don't like it Scarecrow," Mother yelled over the noise of the stagecoach. "You know that tree looked like it was cut down deliberately!"

"I know that," he yelled back. "But Mr. Jenkins has to be in Philadelphia by tomorrow night so we don't have time to wait for someone to come out from Boston to clear the road, and this detour is only a few miles longer."

"And the perfect ambush point for highwaymen!"

Schofield shot her a look. Of course he knew it was likely to be an ambush, which is why he'd made Book and Snake go around the felled tree and approach from the other end of this side road. He trusted Book with his life. But Snake? That was a different matter. Snake wasn't one of his usual men, but the fourth member of his team came down with food poisoning a few nights ago and General Charles Lee himself had sent Snake to take his place on this mission. And Lee was Washington's second in command, so if his Commander in Chief trusted Lee and Lee trusted Snake, then...well, Schofield still didn't like it. It just seemed like too much of a coincidence for his liking. He didn't like the look of the man from the moment he met him, and he couldn't say that he'd changed his mind since then. He was brought out of his reverie by Mother's voice, loud in his ear.

"Jesus fucking Christ! That's the biggest fucking horse I've ever seen!"

"Horse!? What about the fucking giant sitting on top of it!" Schofield replied. He knew his horses had been trained never to stop unless at the order of their driver, so he hoped that the two giants sitting placidly in the middle of the road would move before they barrelled right into them.

Just then a black horse appeared seemingly out of nowhere and galloped up next to the leader of his team. Riderless, it leant its head across and actually latched onto the ear of the other horse, pulling its head around, effectively stopping the forward momentum of the coach.

Mother blanched at the sight of the pitch black horse. "Scarecrow, I'd bet my balls that's Thunder..."

"If that's Thunder, then where's..."

His question was cut short by the sound of two hammers cocking directly behind their heads.

"Looking for me?" Knight asked from where he perched on the roof of the coach, his matching silver dragons trained on the back of each soldiers head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the first chapter 🙂


	2. Chapter 2

"The Black fucking Knight!" Mother cried, as their coach came to a complete stop, the black horse now muscling up to the front of the lead horse, preventing it from being able to move off again. "Are you such a coward that you have to attack from behind?"

"Oh, but you're not exactly ordinary coachmen, now are you?" he asked, but he already knew the answer. "So what are a couple of Marine Force guys doing driving a stage?"

"Fuck you!" Mother replied.

Schofield saw Mother's hand tighten on her shotgun and he shook his head.

Knight saw it too, and he saw the drivers reaction. "So you're the ranking officer then," he said to the driver. "Good to see you're somewhat smarter than your companion. Throw the weapons over the side and my friend will collect them, and then turn around, both of you."

Scarecrow nodded for Mother to do as Knight said, throwing his own pistols and knife over the side of the coach.

Once the two Marines had complied, Knight stood and stepped back a couple of paces keeping his pistols trained on them as he appraised them. He noticed the custom glasses the driver wore, not unlike his own, but a different color. Then he took in the size and demeanour of his offsider and he smiled. "Well, well," he said. "If it isn't the infamous Scarecrow and his Mother. I must say, I'm feeling somewhat humbled that they've sent the likes of you to hunt me."

"This isn't a payroll coach," Schofield said. "You'll find no gold here." He had been expecting to be intercepted, but he hadn't expected a highwayman.

"Thanks for the intel," Knight replied. Then he stamped a boot on the roof of the coach. "Sir!" he called out. "Could I please trouble you to pass your satchels out to my friend?"

Rufus rode over and gathered the two satchels the little man held shakily out the window.

"Make sure that's all of them!" Knight called out, his eyes and his dragons still trained on the Marines.

Mother shifted under the Black Knight's gaze. "What?" she finally demanded.

A slow smile spread across his face. "I must say, I really don't know how _anyone_ could mistake you for a man! And yet...how long have you been a Marine?" Knight saw the woman blanch and the man tense. "Oh don't worry," he said mildly. "Your secret's safe with me. I have no desire to expose you." Then he grinned as he looked her over. "Well not to the Marines anyway."

Mother's mouth fell open. "I think he just made an advance towards me!"

Knight laughed. "A striking woman such as yourself, how could I not?"

"Now I know you're full of shit!" Mother retorted.

"Once all this is over, why don't I come back and we can put that to the test?"

"You've got your satchels," Schofield growled. "Take them and go!"

Knight regarded the Scarecrow. "Well now, maybe I'm not the only one to have noticed the lovely Mother..."

"Knight!" Rufus called. "Movement coming our way! Move your ass!"

Knight looked over his shoulder and frowned, possibilities ticking over in his brain. "Did you send your outriders forward?" he asked.

Schofield stayed silent.

Knight sighed. "I'm thinking you sent your men onwards where the tree was down over the main track so they could skirt around and come back on us from ahead in case this was an ambush...which it was..."

Schofield nodded tightly.

"So who is that coming up behind us, in force and at speed?"

Schofield and Mother shared a look...before Knight jumped nimbly between them and over the front of the carriage, bouncing across the backs of the teamed horses like a dog across the backs of sheep, before he landed lightly on Thunders back.

"Did you see that shit!?" Mother cried.

Knight drew his sword and cut straight through the leather traces that held the harnessed team of horses together. "If I were you Scarecrow I'd take the lovely Mother, jump on these horses and get away from here as fast as you can."

"Why would we do that Knight?" he asked. "We're not the outlaws here."

Just then a shot rang out, narrowly missing Mother as it slammed into the back of the drivers seat. "Fuck! Don't shoot at us you stupid fucks!" she yelled.

"These particular soldiers don't care who they hit!" Knight yelled. "The fact they've seen you speaking to me probably means they've got orders to eliminate you as well."

"Why?" Schofield called back. "What do you know?"

Knight shook his head. "I don't have time for this Scarecrow! Believe me if you want to...or don't! Makes no difference to me, except that I hate to see good soldiers killed by bad ones." Then he smiled. "And I'd also hate to miss out on a date with you Mother."

"Knight!" Rufus yelled as he galloped past him.

"I hope I see you again Scarecrow and Mother!" Knight called as he spurred Thunder on after Rufus.

Another shot came from behind them, this one taking the hat off of Schofield's head, then another that had their mousy little ward slumping dead against the door.

"Scarecrow?" Mother yelled uncertainty.

He glanced behind them as another shot came too close, especially now that Knight and Rufus had ridden off out of sight, and Schofield realised it was because the party were now shooting at them as Knight said they would. "Go!"

As one Mother and the Scarecrow jumped out over the front of the coach, leapfrogging the two rear horses to land on the lead two, conveniently freed from their harness' by Knight's sword. "Hold on tight with your knees!" Schofield called as they dug their heels into the horses sides. No saddles made it more difficult to ride, especially for Marines who weren't exactly famed cavalrymen, but they managed, safely out of sight by the time the other party turned up.

After a few miles, their mounts were breathing hard. They were coach horses built for strength and endurance not speed. They slowed to a canter allowing both their horses and themselves to catch their breaths.

"What the fuck was that all about?" Mother asked.

Schofield shook his head. "I don't know."

"You know it never made sense to me, that whole fucked up story of how Knight and Rufus just up and turned on their regiment one day and massacred half of them with no provocation."

Schofield looked at her. "What are you saying?"

"That if something smells off then it usually is."

"Whoever they were, how'd they know where to find us?" he asked suddenly. "For that matter, how'd they even know we needed help in the first place?"

"Didn't exactly look like helping us was in the forefront of their minds when they started shooting!"

He pulled his horse to a stop and looked around.

Mother followed suit. "What is it?"

"Where's Book?" he asked. "We should've come across them by now."

xxxxxxx

Marine Gunnery Sergeant Scott 'Snake' Kaplan wiped the blood off of his knife and slid it back into its sheath. He was panting hard, that Book was a heavy bastard and he'd had to drag him further than he would've liked so his body wouldn’t be visible from the road. To his annoyance the Scarecrow had paired them up rather than send one forward and one rear, so he'd had to kill Riley before he could even send the pigeon back to his real regiment letting them know where Knight was likely to intercept. Now with Buck Riley disposed of and the messenger bird despatched some time ago, it shouldn't be long before his brothers came upon the stagecoach. Snake's head snapped up, senses on alert. "Coulda swore that was a rifle shot," he mumbled. Slapping Books horse on the rump, he mounted his own and rode off down the track.

xxxxxxx

Rufus looked up to Knight from where he crouched over the prone body of the Marine, and shook his head.

"Didn't think there was much chance with a wound like that," Knight said as he kicked at the dirt. "They're fucking everywhere Rufus!"

When they left the coach they'd stayed off the road, using a wide game track that ran along the treed ridge directly above it. They'd seen the two horses alone on the side of the road, then they'd watched as a single man came out of the woods wiping a long, wicked looking blade on his breeches. He slapped one horse, then got on the other and rode in the direction of Scarecrow and Mother. They'd come down to check what the man had been doing and found the dead Marine, his throat slit from ear to ear.

"You think we should warn Schofield?"

Knight glanced back in the direction they'd come. They had the despatches, the ones he was sure would clear them, and he really didn't want to ride back towards a large party of men who seemed intent on killing them. He sighed. "Damn honor Rufus!" he cried. "No I don't think we should warn him!"

Rufus frowned. That was not the answer he was expecting from his friend.

"But will that stop us from riding back into near certain death, because we can't help _but_ do the honorable thing?"

Rufus smiled and shook his head. "Never has before."

"Never has before," Knight murmured as he swung himself up into the saddle.


End file.
